Self-Publishing through Pomegranate Press

The mainstream publishers turn down perfectly good books which they don't appreciate or which don't fit comfortably into their portfolios. The answer is to go it alone - although not quite alone. The worst kind of 'vanity publisher' will charge you too much for very little. At Pomegranate Press David will work with you at every stage of the process to make your book the best it can be. The costs are clear and uncomplicated from the very beginning, and your work will get the care and attention it deserves.

The tricks of the trade are explained in David's Pomegranate Practicals guide Self Publish.

If you think David may be the man to give your book the shape it needs and the quality it deserves, send him an outline of your work by e-mail. He’ll be happy to give you initial advice without any obligation at all.

The Charges

You will receive two separate quotes from Pomegranate Press. One will be the fee for our services and the other will be the cost of the printing. These are kept separate for the sake of transparency. We will seek a competitive quote from a printer and will add nothing to it, but you are of course free to find another printer if you wish. The norm is for Pomegranate Press to be paid on delivery of the job to the printer, although for longer term projects we may ask for payment in instalments. Printers usually invoice on delivery.

Our Services

Our job is to edit the text (with a light but accurate touch), to lay out the book and to prepare it for printing. At all stages your input is vital: we are pleased to advise, but you must choose the kind of book you wish to hold in your hands once the job is finished.

Who is the Publisher?

In some cases Pomegranate Press will be the publisher, registering the book under one of our ISBN numbers. If you wish, however, you can publish under your own imprint – and we may suggest this approach to you if your title doesn’t sit comfortably in the Pomegranate portfolio. In this case you will need your own ISBN and will carry out the statutory formalities of, for instance, sending copies to the copyright libraries – but these are straightforward matters and we can advise.

Who Holds the Stock?

You do, although Pomegranate Press will take a small number in order to fulfil orders which come direct to us from the bookshops and wholesalers.

Who Distributes the Books?

Although we may be able to arrange the distribution of some Sussex titles to local book shops, our chief service is in responding to orders from the trade. Promotion is the most difficult part of publishing, and you will need to study the market and approach likely purchasers of your book. We can help you devise promotional material.

Payment for Books Sold by Pomegranate Press

Wholesalers and bookshops demand considerable discounts, and publishers have to absorb packaging and postage, too. For books that we sell to the trade we pay our self-publishers what is in effect a royalty twice a year (June and December), having agreed the rate per book with them in advance. There will often be two separate rates: one for books sold at a 50% (wholesale) discount and another for books sold at lesser and varied (retail) discounts.